Suspension systems of the type contemplated herein usually include a stabilizer bar, a control element, and an end link connecting an end of the stabilizer bar with the control element so as to transmit forces therebetween. Such end links have included pairs of grommets respectively embracing the stabilizer bar and the control element, a connecting rod or bolt extending through such grommets, and a spacer mounted on an intermediate portion of the bolt between innermost grommets for maintaining a desired space between the stabilizer bar and the control element.
A suspension system and an end link of the above-described type are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,523, assigned to the assignee of the present application, which disclosure is incorporated herein by reference. Among the advantages of the end link structure of U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,523 was the structure which enabled the unit to be arranged in a few preassembled subassemblies, so that installation in the suspension on a vehicle production line was greatly simplified.
In the patent, the intermediate spacer is disclosed as a spool formed with a tubular steel body and annular steel flanges at its opposite ends. The tubular body is disclosed as being formed from a flat piece of steel stock with an axial seam. As will be understood, suspension systems of vehicles, such as automobiles, are frequently subjected to corrosive elements, such as salt, water, snow, and the like. Such elements may prematurely corrode the normally exposed parts of the end link, such as the metal tube and flanges of the intermediate spool, and may also enter within the spool and cause corrosion of the connecting rod or bolt.